Mohammed Ben Sulayem the new FIA President wants to increase – as in the past – the number of teams on the grids in Formula 1 and, most recently last January, the FIA announced that it was opening the application process for new teams interested.
We all know that Team US Andretti, supported by the GM Cadillac group, is the first to have expressed its real desire for many months to land in Formula 1, but now it is no longer the only one!
The Panthera Asian F1 structure has therefore just confirmed that it is about to submit its official application and register!
Indeed Benjamin Durand has just announced his interest in F1, stating:
« We still believe that the Asian market and the Chinese market are the next developing markets. »
And he specifies:
« They all look west, no one looks east. Today, Formula 1 has a lot of focus on the United States, which is normal, because they are growing, but once that market is there, Asia and Africa will be the next big markets for F1, especially a driver like the Chinese Zhou Guanyu currently already driving in one of the GP teams.
And he continues:
« It’s been a roller coaster because we could have abandoned our project a long time ago, but we still believe in it. »
Remember that the preliminary deadline for submitting an application to the FIA is set for February 17, the official deadline being April 30.
The FIA will announce its decisions on June 30.
John ROWBERG
Photos : F1
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